Ocean
by Cow as White as Milk
Summary: Sometimes the ocean will help you find the comfort you are looking for. Lackson.


Ocean

Summary: Sometimes the ocean will help you find the comfort you are looking for. Lackson.

Disclaimer: I do not own Hannah Montana

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Jackson Stewart hopped over the counter at 'Rico's.' It was time to close up for the night and he was looking forward to going home. He was at that point in his life where he was hating waking up in the morning with a passion. His life basically followed the same routine. Wake up, go to classes and get griped at by an annoying, teenaged entrepreneur. No one asked him how his day was, heck no one even seemed to care. 

One bright spot in his long days consisted of 'Her.' She would come and sit on the same stool every day and ask for an ice tea, with no lemon. Why she chose to come to 'Rico's' he couldn't tell. He had known her for years and as far as he could tell 'Rico' annoyed her as well. Yet she was there like clockwork and Jackson made sure her drink was ready for her. She would just smile shyly but she wouldn't say anything and on countless times he wondered if maybe she felt the same feeling he did.

He lived for that smile, just a glimpse of it would get him through the rest of the day. He didn't know what it would do to him if she didn't show up. Well now he knew. Sure she had been absent before, but he always knew beforehand that she wouldn't be there. His sister would usually give him a clue such as "Lilly is sick today."

Today was different. Lilly was not sick and his heart was literally at his feet. He had asked himself repeatedly throughout the evening why it was that she hadn't shown up. Was she in trouble? Was it him? Man, he hoped it wasn't him. He couldn't stand it if she was upset with him in any way. It would kill him, he was sure. Even more so than when he had over heard her tell Miley that she had fallen in love with Jake.

Why shouldn't she have. The guy was rich and good looking. Even Miley had fallen for him at one point in time. He had come to the conclusion that he would just be happy for her. If she chose Jake then he wouldn't get in the way. After all, Jake could provide for her much more than he could at the moment. So he would see her everyday and give her his best smile. He would do his best to make her feel special if only for a moment, because in that moment he could almost believe that she was his.

Turning the last lights off, he turned to head home. There she was, standing up to her knees in the water. At least, it looked like her. The light of the full moon shone off of her blond hair and the lightness of her clothes almost made her look like a ghost.

Giving up on his previous destination he ran towards the water. He had to see her. He had to know why she didn't show up today. Above all, he needed to know why she was walking into the water. She didn't look dressed to do night surfing and he couldn't see a board.

He picked up his speed and ran into the water.

She was crying, and the closer he got the more heart broken she sounded. She was up to her ribs now.

"Lilly," He whispered as he grabbed her around the waist. She struggled against him. Kicking and scratching, but he pulled her back to shallow water knowing that she would be leaving him some serious bruises by morning. "_Sweet Niblets_!" He exclaimed after an sharp jab to his ribs. "Lilly, _what's_ wrong!"

Her weight seemed to catch him off balance and both of them tumbled into the shallow water. Her hot breath hit his neck and he held her tight.

"_Please_, Jackson. Just let me _go_." She sobbed.

Jackson couldn't understand why she was hurting so bad. She always seemed so happy. Smiling and carrying on. "What happened?"

"He told me he _loved_ me." She said softly. She was no longer struggling due to the fatigue she was feeling. Instead she snuggled deeper into the chest of her best friend's brother. He was a welcome warmth as the ocean's cold water ebbed and flowed around them, and not to mention a fantasy come true. Well, her suicide was not part of that fantasy, she amended in her mind before speaking once again. "But then he told me that I was beneath him. He said he wanted to marry me, but it wouldn't be good for his image."

'How could anyone say anything like that about Lilly?' Jackson was furious. Sometimes guys made him ashamed of his own sex. "Lils, I know that you are hurting, but he is _not_ worth your tears."

"Why would he say he loved me and wanted to marry me, if he didn't?" She asked her voice muffled.

"I hate to be the breaker of bad news, but most men are jerks." He said quietly against her ear. "Why were you going for a _swim_?" He asked even though he knew the answer.

She shrugged and pulled away to look him in the eye. She contemplated on lying to him but the worry reflected in his face changed her mind. She needed to be up front about her irrational insecurities. "I figured that if I wasn't good enough for someone who loved me then life wasn't worth living."

Jackson's fears had been confirmed and it pissed him off. He pulled his arms away from where they had been resting at her waist and gripped her face hard, only loosening it when he saw her wince. "He didn't love you!" He yelled. "He wouldn't say those things if he did. Dammit Lilly, there are people in this world who do care about you. What about them? What about Miley, My dad and Oliver? If you died don't you think they'd be heartbroken?"

She shook her head. "They're family. They don't love me like that."

Frustrated and sorrowful, Jackson stood her up and let go of her. "_Fine_. If dying is going to make you happy, I won't stop you." He said in a barely audible whisper. "But, while you are walking out there, I want you to be thinking, 'what about _Jackson_?'"

She gave him a confused glance before once again turning to look out at the ocean.

Jackson backed up, his eyes never leaving the back of her head. "Unlike that _punk_, Lilly, I love you more than _anything_ in this world." There, he said it. He just hated that he had to admit it to her now. On the other hand, now that it was out in the open, he would admit it to her until death parted them. "If you die like _this_, it _will_ kill me."

Lilly stopped in her tracks and turned to face him wide eyed. She had known Jackson forever and she knew well enough that he would never lie while in the middle of a serious situation.

Seeing that she was no longer facing the ocean, he continued. "The question is, do _you_ love me?"

She stared down at the water that was pooling around her ankles. The truth was, that she did love him. She just never thought that he would love his baby sister's best friend in that special way. So she focused on Jake, and allowed herself only thirty minutes a day in Jackson's presence. Sure Jake had questioned her many times on why she needed an ice tea from 'Rico's' but she just waved it off with one of her usual explanation such as, 'They make the best iced tea,' or 'it's tradition.' Never in a million years did she imagine that Jackson would feel the same way.

She gave him a shy smile and walked meekly toward him. "I loved Jake, for all of the wrong reasons. He made me irrational and angry and I mistook that for passion." She said with a hint of sadness in her voice. "Unlike him, I think I've loved you forever." She gave a small chuckle. "Or at least since that day when you came down the stairs wearing that blue, _sparkly_ Hannah number."

Jackson snorted and drew her into a hug. Sure he wanted to kiss her, but he had a feeling that tonight was not the best night for that. He had forgotten about the day that Lilly had mentioned, but unlike silly moments in time, he would not allow her to forget that he cared.

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AN: So, what do you think? Please Review. It took me an hour to write it, you can take 2 minutes to review it. 


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